Erysichthon
In
Greek mythology, King
Erysichthon of
Thessaly was the son of
Triopas. He cut down trees in a grove, sacred to
Demeter. She punished him by placing
Aethon, the god of famine, in his stomach, making him permanently hungry. He sold all his possessions, including his daughter,
Mestra, to buy food but was still hungry. Mestra was freed from slavery by
Poseidon, who gave her the gift of shape-shifting to escape her bonds. Erysichthon sold her numerous times to make money to feed himself. Eventually, Erysichthon ate himself in hunger.
Ovid. Metamorphoses VIII, 738-878.